Stop the Deportation of Adolfo Garcia and Julio Diaz

Adolfo Garcia Diaz and Julio Diaz Sales, Mam-speaking Mayan immigrants from Guatemala, were 17 years old when ICE agents raided their home on November 19, 2008 and beat them and their housemates. The agents had mistakenly targeted their home, as well as several others in Homestead, Florida during a multi-city operation directed at a sex trafficking network. Neither of the young men nor their housemates was charged with any crimes, and neither have criminal histories. Adolfo and Julio both stand under 5'5" tall, were unarmed, and posed no physical threat. They were both lying face down on the floor in handcuffs when they were kicked in the face. They and their housemates were so bloodied and bruised when they arrived at the immigration detention center, where they were detained for immigration violations only, that both the head of the facility and the Guatemalan consul, who visited them, expressed alarm.

Although Adolfo and Julio cooperated with a federal criminal investigation into the beatings and were granted certifications by the U.S. Attorney's Office demonstrating that cooperation, ICE is now demanding that they return to their native country.

Americans for Immigrant Justice (AI Justice) and WeCount! have sent a letter to the national director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), John Morton, calling on him to stop the deportation of these two hard-working young men. They deserve to be treated justly after having their civil rights brutally violated. Until ICE accepts responsibility for the actions of their agents, they will continue to abuse their power.

I'm the boys' lawyer and I started the petition because I don't trust the immigration system to not fail these boys, even after all they've been through -- and they need support from people like you to ensure they can stay in America.